It is known to use wrap-around cartons, also called icepack cartons, to hold containers, bottles, or cans filled with drinks. The icepack cartons are torn partially open at the top by the end consumer and filled with ice to cool the containers or the liquid held in the containers.
Conventional carton packaging is not suitable for these applications because they do not form watertight outer packaging. Because of cuts present in the carton blank, they necessarily have leakage points in the unfolded state. As ice melts, melt water can escape through these leakage points. A leakage of melt water such as this is extremely unwelcome.
In contrast, icepack cartons are made from self-contained carton blanks that do not have any cuts of this kind in the carton blank. To be able to fold closed carton blanks of this kind, a multiplicity of fold lines are provided. This is carried out, for example, by pre-stamping fold lines in the carton blank. Subsequent folding can then take place along these fold lines.
Icepack cartons of this kind have a base segment that, in the folded state, forms the base of the outer packaging. Drink containers held in the outer packaging stand on this base. A front side segment, a rear side segment, and two lateral surface sections opposite each other make the lateral surfaces of the icepack carton.
Connecting segments are provided between the segments adjoining each other in the folded state, for example the front side segment and a lateral surface segment. These connecting segments effect a closed connection of the segments actually adjoining each other. The connecting segments have one side hinged onto the particular segment to which they are adjoining. These hinge points run at right angles to each other in the unfolded state of the carton blank. Moreover, in the connecting segment, a further folding line runs, for example, at a 45° angle to the aforesaid hinge points. Around this fold line, when the carton blank is folded, a folding of the connecting segment occurs in such a way that the two connecting segment areas separated from each other by the fold line come to rest flat against each other at least partially. In this way, the forming of closed outer packaging corners is possible.
A disadvantage of forming the outer packaging from one self-contained blank is that it is difficult to fold. As a result, automated folding of the carton blanks to form the desired outer packaging is possible only with difficulty. Hitherto, the folding of outer packaging of this kind has been carried out manually. This results in low processing speed and high costs.